Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar  (Used)

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

I recently picked up a Squier Jag with candy apple sparkly paint and vintage tint neck from MF (for grandson) that had a gorgeous finish, so I kept a lookout for a strat with the same finish, and found an American Deluxe Stratocaster here on MF (good deal too!). Bought it in a heartbeat. But I did knew it would need some upgrades. I bought a 2003 AD Strat, with the original noiseless pickups. The guitar was a disaster, tone and finish issues, and I was never happy with it. I traded it in for my 2005 Gibson LP Standard which I of course will never sell. In 2007, I bought a Custom Shop Strat, and the body cracked in the cold and had tuning/ trem issues even with a new body. This new instrument I just bought I suspected would have tonal issues, and I was right. The S1 switching is unnecessarily complicated and the tonal options are weak and kill harmonics, and sound even worse on my Marshall JCM. Also, the N3 pickups are about as listless as Fender has ever put out, even worse than the original ceramic noiseless- no harmonics, poor sustain, and just plain weak. And the mint green pickguard, etc. was emetic looking. All told, and considering my past troubles with Fender Strats, this time I was prepared. I had a preloaded white pickguard with a Dimarzio DP420 bridge, SD STK9 middle, SD STK4 neck, and an onboard SD preamp. I changed the bridge block to a CG all stainless steel block, and a screw in arm (the guitar didn't come with a trem bar anyway, and I'm not a fan of the push-in). I also changed the jack plate, being one of the most important electronics on the instrument. The stock one was easily bent, and made from cheap metal. I replaced it with a rugged stainless .5 ml '70s style jack plate, and a Switchcraft stereo jack. The jacks snap in hard and stay in. I replaced the Fender super-switch with a more reliable Gotoh 5 way switch. CTS 500k push pull pots, and Orange Drop caps. I chiseled a small battery cavity next to the trem claw, put on some EB SS strings, and voila! My dream strat was born! It sings, grinds, crunches, wails, and stays in tune really well, even with the heavy trem use and string bending. The V neck is great, action is terrific. It's a great instrument- now. So much for warranty. But Fender should listen and learn from its customers that we want more than the strat's great playability, nice long scale, and its tonal potential. Yeah, the "bell like tone and chime" was great for the '50s and '60s, but this is 2013. To keep up with the new synths and workstations, powerful new amplification, and an abundance of great effects, not to mention thousnds of great new and talented artists, the Stratocaster needs to evolve to keep up with other musical technology and talent. Other pickup manufacturers are literally decades ahead of Fender technologically, and active instruments are now more the norm (even my Les Paul is active). Simpler and more power, that's what we want! So I'll give it a 3 as bought, 5 after market, so it gets a 4. Fender, please listen?!?

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

It's a nice guitar and has the V neck which I just love but for the same price you can get the Clapton model that has better pickups plus the TBX knob and the preamp so you can get a heavier sound.Plus they come in VBlack,white,torino red and you can unblock the trem if you want to use it. That will be my next guitar as I just bought a Beck Strat and I'm not crazy with the floating trem so being that it is brand new and only played once if I could sell then I can get the Clapton that much faster. Or when I pay my bills next month I will have enough to buy the Guitar.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

Overall this guitar is perfect for any genre of music. I honestly would recommend this guitar to any player because it's so versitile. From the locking tuners to the wood quality, this guitar is great! I know the price may be a bit expensive for some but once you buy this, you won't regret it. Nor will you ever want to put it down.
Starting with the features on this guitar, it has a select Alder body with a contoured heel and body and a soft Maple V neck profile and a Maple compound-radius fretboard. It has three Fender N3 Noiseless pickups and one volume with a S-1 push and two tones. This Fender has my favorite bridge which is the deluxe 2-point Synchronized tremolo. Unlike other Fender tremolos, this one has just two pins that go into the body instead of six which helps the guitar stay in tune better. Another thing this guitar features are Fender deluxe locking tuners which is especially great when you have a tremolo because they stop the strings from going out of tune.
The quality on this guitar is honestly amazing! I haven't played a better Fender than this one. It's extremely comfortable and really easy to play with ultra easy access to the higher frets. This guitar's bolt on it contoured so it makes it easier to reach the higher frets along with medium jumbo frets. The wood on this guitar is great. You can tell it has quality wood because the Alder grain is tight and even.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

I've got nothing bad to say about this guitar. When my wife and I got engaged I bought her a diamond ring, she sent me to the guitar store and turned me loose. This is the axe I picked out of everything in the store; and I stand by that choice. I've used this axe in a wide variety of bands from experimental space-age jam music, to funk, to 50s covers, to hard rock and blues and it handles the rigors of the road very well. I can't agree with the others about the weight issue, my particular specimen isn't overly heavy. Maybe they've put on weight in the current model year, but mine's plenty comfortable. I have a Gibson Les Paul Studio which is a lot tougher on the shoulder than this baby. I can do 3 full sets with this axe and not feel too haggard the next day. No more than with other guitars anyway. This guitar is my first choice for stage or home recording. It's like a swiss army knife of tone, there are all kinds of little tricks you can pull out with this guitar; and the workmanship of the neck is perfect; it's so comfortable to just jam on all day. The time just flies by. If you're looking for something dependable that's a joy to play and beautiful to look at, look no further.
Really excellent features without compromising on the basics. The S1 switch gives you a VERY wide variety of sounds and they're all usable; very versatile axe. It'll go from country jangle to grunge rock crunch with ease. The bridge and trem arm do an excellent job. The locking tuners are very fluid in operation. And the neck. Oh my. I could write pages about the glories of this neck. I love the V-shape, it just fits so comfortably in the hand and I can't get enough of the tint. It looks absolutely gorgeous but also has just the right amount of "sticky" to it so you can really dig in to those big bends and pivot on your thumb quite nicely in classical fret-hand position.
I have zero complaints. I've never had an issue with it whatsoever. Excellent workmanship, flawless finish.
They've jumped in price some since I bought mine but if mine were lost, stolen, or irreparably broken I'd get another one as soon as I could afford to.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

A superbly made, great-sounding strat that gets less than a 10 because of the weight and the cost of new one.
Great sounding and playing guitar but this was by far the heaviest strat I have ever played. Not able to weigh it but the return ship to MF in the case totaled over 20 pounds. The guitar itself felt like it was over 10. Strapped on and standing up it was too much for me after 15 minutes, however that was the only problem I had with it. The S1 system and SCN noiseless pickups kept me entranced for hours sitting down and playing through a POD HD. Very wide range of usable sounds, much more than my previous standard strat. The feel of the compound radius V neck was superb. The thickness of the neck no doubt contributed to the excess weight. The V shape kind of forces you to put your thumb over the top of the neck, which I find helpful for leverage with string bending. Maybe not the best neck for shredders, though.
The guitar had very good resonance unplugged and felt very solid. The body and neck wood were obviously top quality. Action and intonation were fine out of the box. The knob for one tone control was a little loose, easily remedied and not necessarily Fender's fault.
I tried a dent-and-scratch with a small nick in the top of the headstock, which brought the price down to what I thought a new one should cost. With Fenders I can't help but feel I'm paying extra for the name.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

This is one great guitar to own!!!
Came perfectly set up from MusiciansFriend. Beautiful Strat tone from Noiseless pickups, gorgeous finish and so delightfully easy to play. One of the nicest guitars in my collection!
Outstanding quality and workmanship! What else would you expect from a US-made Strat?
Great value, a sure-thing to appreciate.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

Of all the guitars that I own this has become my favorite. I got the 2-tone sunburst and with the gloss tinted v-neck neck it looks to be right out of the 50's. Everything beside the looks is pretty modern. I'm not sure if it's the bridge or the locking tuners but I have to tune this less than my Floyd Rose equipped guitar. The N3 pickups with the new S-1 switching system let you get any tone from authentic strat to full on humbucker all with no hum. The v-neck is very comfortable to play and the satin finish on the back makes it smooth to pay even when your hands get moist. Besides the N3 pickups the biggest change from the older models is the compound radius fretboard which goes from 9.5" to 14" and makes barre chords and bends so much easier. I really didn't want to pay quite this much but I'm glad I bought it now and can't see myself ever getting rid of it. Great Guitar, Highly recommended.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

It is a bit heavy for a strat. Sounds remarkable in every genre outside of metal...but a good amp can take care of that. It's a blues machine.
Most comfortable neck out there excluding the 60's MIM.
Beautiful as a morning in Hawaii when I open the case to release the beast
Worth every penny. GOTTA good deal.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

This is a real beauty of a strat .... must be seen and heard to be fully appreciated. The vintage tint on the neck is absolutely gorgeous , and the pickups deliver classic Fender tone noise-free. Shredders will likely not favor the V-neck's "fatness" .... but this guitar will please anyone interested in vintage strats generally , and , I believe , blues afficionados in particular. It stays in tune through brutal string bends and can deliver plenty of "grunge" via the S-1 switch on demand. Mine has the vintage tobacco-burst , and after improving on the factory set-up it became my favorite guitar.

Comments about Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster V Neck Electric Guitar:

I play blues and classic rock mostly and have been playing for about 38 years. My signal path is Crybaby Wah, Voodoo Labs Sparkle Drive, Digitech Bad Monkey, Boss Mega Distortion, Boss DD-3, to Fender 65 Twin Reverb Reissue. I bought it to upgrade from my American Hotrodded Texas Special Strat.My guitar has the N3 noiseless pickups, and the first thing I noticed was the silence when not playing. As you can see from my effects, I use different levels of distortion. There is no hum. Using the S1 switch brings up several good useable tones. Most of them have more bass than than without the switch except for the neck position. It produces a very brash tone sort of like a wah pedal in the toe down position. At first I didn't like that sound, but it gives a great contrast to the bassier neck position sound without the S1 switch. The V neck feels fat in the lower frets, but as you move up the neck it slims out. To me, it is comfortable throughout. With the locking tuners, it stays in tune.